Cemu, the crowdfunded Wii U emulation software, is working on a new update that makes significant improvements to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. To help clarify just how significant the improvements are, the team released a new trailer showing the differences between versions 1.7.3 and 1.7.4.

Over the past few weeks, Breath of the Wild saw not only visual enhancements, but also improves to features like swimming, the Magnesis rune, and the Stasis rune. The software still has a ways to go, but Cemu has made some impressive steps forward.

Currently Cemu 1.7.4 has yet to be released to the public, but there is a public test release available to the emulator's Patreon contributors. The Cemu devs have tentatively scheduled the full release for April 8 and will spend the next week hotfixing what issues their patrons can find. Currently, the update is on version 1.7.4c.

While Cemu 1.7.4 does make several improvements to other Wii U games as well, its focus is primarily on The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Fixing the Magnesis and Stasis runes, as well as fixing water and Cryonis, will allow players to progress through the game in a normal fashion. The devs have also fixed a few grass and lighting issues, as well as the problem with Link falling through the earth, which should make playing the game a more appealing experience. Performance is another issue entirely, as Cemu's creators say it wasn't a priority for this patch.

Other emulated games which have seen improvements in Cemu 1.7.4 include The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, Xenoblade Chronicles X, Fast Racing Neo, and others. That doesn't mean that these games are running smoothly, or even that the new changes are significant, because the Cemu team focuses on iterative updates.

With most of this update's focus being on Zelda, fixes in other games are bound to be small. Cemu users should definitely check out their favorite games and then post their feedback to help with upcoming updates.

It must be reiterated that Cemu is meant for legal emulation of the Wii U and its games. Players should only rip the Wii U games they already own to play through Cemu's emulation on PC, as piracy is illegal. That means, in order to dump physical games onto a PC, a Wii U, a copy of the game, an SD card reader and a lot of work is required. Cemu's Reddit community is a great place to start for those who are interested.

Cemu 1.7.4 is currently being tested by the emulator's patrons, with a full release scheduled for April 8. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is available now on both the Nintendo Switch and Wii U.